The Night of the Hunter—incredibly, the only film the great actor Charles Laughton ever directed—is truly a stand-alone masterwork. The Night of the Hunter (1955) is a truly compelling, haunting, and frightening classic masterpiece thriller-fantasy, and the only film ever directed by the great British actor Charles Laughton. It is imaginably chilling and disturbing. Fast-forward to this week’s Criterion canonization of Laughton’s film. CHARLES LAUGHTON DIRECTS ‘THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER’ The film has been cited among critics as one of the best of the 1950s, and has been selected by the United States National Film Registry for preservation in the Library of Congress. Adapted by James Agee from a novel by Davis Grubb, The Night of the Hunter represented legendary actor Charles Laughton's only film directing effort. The bestselling, National Book Award–finalist novel that inspired Charles Laughton’s expressionist horror classic starring Robert Mitchum and Shelley Winters. This is one weird, troubling movie, all the more so for being released in 1955. The Night of the Hunter has the feel and the force of an American folk fable; yet, it’s a curious and highly eccentric sort of folk fable, mixing, as it does, rural humor with gothic humor, biblical quotation and Freudian symbolism, and everyday realities with a near-mythic confrontation between the forces of … “The Night of the Hunter” Anna N. Beach Paper #1 March 7, 2011 “The Night of The Hunter” is a thriller written by Davis Grubb in 1953. The book is based upon a true story of a frightening man who was hung for murdering two women and three children. Probably Robert Mitchum's best-known performance was in this extremely creepy suspense-horror film … At the time of its original release, however, it was a critical and box-office failure, and Laughton never directed again. It might have been released in 1955, but with its stark black and white photography, irreal set design full of odd angles and larger-than-life villain, it feels like it's from a different era entirely. “The Night of the Hunter” Anna N. Beach Paper #1 March 7, 2011 “The Night of The Hunter” is a thriller written by Davis Grubb in 1953. A religious fanatic marries a gullible widow whose young children are reluctant to tell him where their real daddy hid $10,000 he'd stolen in a robbery. Murderous ex-convict Harry Powell misrepresents himself as a prison chaplain upon his release from prison. It was only while watching the film, enthralled but also deeply unsettled, that I fully realized just how insidiously terrifying the … About The Night of the Hunter. Plot Summary. The book was a national bestseller and was voted a finalist for the 1955 National Book Award Story line and development. Two young children, Pearl and John Harper, are being raised alone by their mother in Cresap’s Landing, Ohio. Starting out on the British stage in 1926, he had been acting in film since 1928 and came to Hollywood in the early '30s. It might have been released in 1955, but with its stark black and white photography, irreal set design full of odd angles and larger-than-life villain, it feels like it's from a different era entirely. It is imaginably chilling and disturbing. Few [films] reach the level of magnificence and genius as the suspenseful, alternately lyrical and visually jarring American gothic creepfest, The Night of the Hunter. The Night of the Hunter – review 5 / 5 stars 5 out of 5 stars. The Night of the Hunter is one of a kind. And as the only film directed by actor Charles Laughton, its very existence is somewhat haunting. The setting for The Night of the Hunter is Cresap’s Landing, a small town on the banks of the Ohio River, which has recently been shocked by a killing during a robbery carried out by Ben Harper (Peter Graves) who now awaits execution, meanwhile sharing a cell with Preacher Harry Powell (Mitchum). Directed by Charles Laughton. The Night of the Hunter – review 5 / 5 stars 5 out of 5 stars. The Night of the Hunter is a 1953 thriller novel by American author Davis Grubb. The Night of the Hunter is nearly as demented as its lead villain, and I mean that as a compliment. The story of The Night of the Hunter occurs in 1930 in the Ohio River Valley country of West Virginia. Following a script by James Agree, The Night of the Hunter follows nine-year-old John Harper (Billy Chapin) and his four-year-old sister Pearl (Sally Jane Bruce), who are left fatherless when their Depression-weary pop, Ben (Peter Graves), robs a bank and kills two men in the process.